Audio Excerpt: Jan. 11, 2007 Transportation Committee working session
Rep. Dan Kristiansen (39th Dist.) Question to WSDOT Secretary Douglas MacDonald
Location of Audio can be found at this link: http://www.tvw.org/MediaPlayer/Archived/WME.cfm?EVNum=2007011038&TYPE=A
(29 mb MP3 Audio File; total time of 2 hours, 5 min.)
(Start of audio for the below excerpt: 1 hour, 54:25 min. into work session)
Rep. D. Kristiansen: Thank you, Madam Chair. My -- the Governor mentioned the other night and you've mention—you've all mentioned today how safety is a big issue. I come from a district that is getting pennies back on the dollar on the gas tax, and because I've lost 14 members just this year in fatalities, uh, arguably the—not only the most dangerous stretch of highway in the state but also in the country, and the top most dangerous highways in the country, how do we get a project like that, upon on the forefront of a priority list? That's really – I mean if we're going to put safety first, you know, I lost a good friend this year. And, uh, we're—my district and, and along—along with Rep. Lovick, we're losing our neighbors out there. And, uh, it just seems as if it just keeps getting put off and off and off.
Secretary MacDonald: Well, I think it's a subject for—for a, a personal conversation and another invitation in—in—in the, uh community. Uh, uh…the numbers show that – I mean, you're talking of U. S. 2, I'm sure, right?
Unidentified Female Yes. He said yes.
Secretary MacDonald: Yeah. Is shown by the numbers not in fact to be at the top rank of the safety, uh, problems in the state. Now we've a terrible problem with the U. S. 2 Coalition because they're effectively—the U. S.2 Coalition has expressed the concern of people on the route that the situation is unique and needs, uh, attention beyond others. But the – we need to be on a very frank discussion about the numbers. We have to have frank discussion about the resources available. And we have to have a really frank discussion about some of the things that are causing the U. S. 2 situation to deteriorate even as we try to help it, and that has to do with the way traffic is building because of growth. There isn't very much additional traffic coming over the top of the pass**. And so as the—as the U. S. 2 corridor study has developed, and as we've worked with citizens, I think we're really honing in on the difficulties we face of investment, uh, land use planning, and, uh, the, uh, competing needs of U. S. 2 and other needs across the—the state. And we're happy to talk about it. It's a very tough problem for us, too.
**With all due respect, I think I'm not alone when I unequivocally state that every person driving U. S. 2 over the last four or five years would – without a doubt -- disagree with the Secretary.